Venezuela’s opposition leader Juan Guaido lashed out at police on Sunday for preventing him from attending the National Assembly where he was due to be voted in for a second term as parliament speaker.
Lawmakers were due to elect the new National Assembly president, with Guaido widely expected to be confirmed -- a position he has held for the past year.
FILE - Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido.
But when he arrived at the assembly, police prevented him from entering the chamber where a candidate loyal to President Nicolás Maduro was being sworn in.
"This is unprecedented!" Guaido told a member of the security forces. Guiado climbed over a fence in an attempt to reach the National Assembly building.
For the last year, Guaido has led opposition to Venezuela’s socialist president Nicolas Maduro. Guaido is recognized by the U.S. and nearly 60 other countries as the legitimate president. Guaidó’s international backing rests on the fact that, as assembly president, he is Venezuela’s highest-ranking official to have been democratically elected.
Despite intense pressure from the opposition and international support, Maduro has retained power, thanks largely to support from the armed forces.
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Michael Kozac on Sunday said Juan Guaido remains Venezuela's interim president, despite the swearing-in earlier this morning of a dissident opposition lawmaker as president of the National Assembly.